Dress Up
by DiscoSludge
Summary: A short, sweet one-shot. Hikari and Kouki accidentally lock themselves in the Villa during a snowstorm. Hikari just wants to show Kouki her new dresses, but they discover something neither had known before.


It was one of those terribly snowy days where all you wanted to do was stay at home and lay down on a comfortable chair with soup. Hikari licked her lips thinking about her mother's homemade chicken-noodle. It was to die for. Another reason Hikari had regretted buying her Villa. Well, she didn't exactly buy it, more along the lines of having it forced upon her. She leaned against the windowsill and sighed.

"You know, I bet Jun's almost done with the league." Kouki said coolly. Hikari turned from her spot and looked over at him. His nose was buried in a thick leather-bound book labeled _Myths of Hoenn_. Typical Kouki, always reading. His feet were propped up on the top of the couch and his hat hung limply on the arm of the chair.

"Well, if he calls tell him that he's not allowed to leave the league until this snow lets up." Hikari said as she glanced back out the window. Snow was falling violently now and the wind was blowing it in every direction. Kouki looked up from his book with a look of confusion.

"Won't you be home to answer as well?" He asked, closing the book and setting it on the clear-glass coffee table. It was covered in Kouki's books, Hikari's magazines, and Jun's...well Jun's everything. She turned around and hopped off the counter, her socked feet landing firmly on their fake-cobblestone kitchen floor.

"No, I have to go shopping." At that Kouki rolled his eyes and stood up, walking over towards her. She crossed her arms and looked at him.

"No, I'm not letting you go out in that weather." Kouki said as he looked behind her towards the window. Hikari rolled her eyes and shuffled around him, snatching up her purse and one of her pokeballs. He scoffed and turned around, grabbing her wrist.

"Hikari," Kouki said in a warning voice. She slipped out of his grasp and skipped towards the door, fast enough to get away from Kouki's slow lumber. It wasn't that Kouki was big, just getting taller with puberty. Hikari was the first to point that out last year when they each turned fifteen. Kouki had gotten taller and slower, Jun's voice had gotten deeper, and Hikari...well Hikari just became a little more womanly. She prefered not to think about it, because most men her age did. There was nothing wrong with having her size of bra at her current age of sixteen. Though it was still embarassingly awkward for her at certain times. She shook herself out of her thoughts and toggled the door but it remained quite closed. Maybe the lock was frozen. _Great, fantastic, _Hikari thought to herself, frowning.

"What's wrong?" Kouki asked, now standing behind her. Hikari jumped a bit and turned around, smacking him in the chest.

"Don't sneak up behind me like that." She warned, waggling a finger at him, then turning back towards the door. It wouldn't budge. Kouki pushed her aside and tried it himself to no avail. He looked back at her and she was wearing a smirk. Hikari loved being right.

"We're locked in." Kouki pointed out. Hikari narrowed her eyes and sighed. Pushing him over and grabbing the door handle, tugging it backwards. Kouki grabbed it too, tugging backwards. Unfortunately for them it worked and they both went tumbling backwards, Kouki's back landing into the couch, Hikari's back landing on Kouki's chest.

"Ow." Hikari said dumbly, rubbing her head, and then she realized what was in her hand. Sitting in her pale, white hand was the same brass doorknob that usually found itself on the door. Her eyes widened.

Kouki pushed her off of him and stood up, brushing the imaginary dirt bunnies off of him, then his eyes wandered to Hikari's hand and his eyes widened as well. Hikari stared up at him, afraid of his reaction. He pursed his lips and studied the doorknob for a moment, then where it used to be, then back to the doorknob.

"Wow, we're a force to be reckoned with I suppose." He said, rubbing the back of his head. Hikari threw the doorknob at the wall next to him. Kouki flinched with surprise and stared in horror at Hikari. Her eyes were very angry.

"Do you realize what this means? If you hadn't 'helped' then we wouldn't be stuck in this darn house!" Hikari yelled, her fists clenched and brought up to her face. Kouki thought that if this situation wasn't so dire she would look like one of those comedic boxers who were so weak that people laughed. But he was quite scared of her right now.

"Well uh, yeah. Sorry about that." He said, placing his hands at his sides. She growled very loudly and rushed towards him, fire in her usually-calm eyes. Though he was afraid of her at the moment, Kouki grabbed her wrists before she actually had a chance to hit him, and held them together. She narrowed her eyes at him. _Darn, he's still stronger than me, _Hikari thought to herself angrily.

"No need to get violent." Kouki said quietly, releasing her hands and picking up the doorknob at to the right of his feet. Hikari rubbed her wrist and furrrowed her eyebrows, staring at his arms.

"Since when have you been able to actually fight me?" She asked, reeling off topic. Kouki thought about it for a moment and smiled to himself, then turned to face her. He gave her an innocent shrug and strode over to the door-with-no-doorknob. Hikari smally smiled to herself.

"We could try screwing it back in." He said loudly. She walked over towards him and bent down, examining the hole where the knob used to be, then looked at the actual knob. It was dented with and bent roundly while the hole was obviously too narrow for it.

"Yeah, forget that." Hikari said standing back up straight and showing Kouki the difference between the doorknob and the hole. He cradled his chin between his thumb and index finger, thinking diffucultly. She shifted her feet uncomfortably and sat down on on of the bar-stools right by the bar, which they never really used. Hikari figured that they would eventually use it once they all turned twenty-one, but that was a bit far off from now. She spun in the seat and placed her elbows on the granite bar, rolling the knob on the surface.

"Then we can call Jun and tell him to come and open it from the outside." Kouki said, giving up and sitting next to Hikari. He rested his head on the bar and stared at her. She was wearing a look of apprehension.

"Like I said before, I don't want him out in this storm." She said, continuing to roll the knob with one, manicured finger. Kouki rubbed his temples and thought about it. Hikari looked over at him and smiled. Kouki was the brains, he would always be the brains and that was what people liked about him. He was a reliable guy, not to mention a great cook. He made the best rice balls in town. Hikari realized that she was always listing things about Kouki. Did that make her weird? No, not at all, she was just giving pros about her friend. It wasn't like she did this with other people. Ugh, did that make it weirder, she thought, rubbing her temples vigorously.

"Whoa, are you trying to drill holes into your head Frankenstein?" Kouki asked, observing Hikari's violent temple-rubbing. She stopped and opened her eyes. Looking over at him, Hikari nervously chuckled at his joke. He joked a lot too. _Agh! Stop it! _She inwardly yelled at herself.

"Headache." She replied easily, hopping off the stool and striding over to the couch. Kouki frowned and stepped into the kitchen. He began throwing together a sandwhich. Literally throwing. Hikari watched from the couch as he threw ham and turkey angrily onto a piece of wheat bread. She stifled a giggle.

"What?" He asked offensively, then haphazardly threw his sandwich onto a paper plate. Hikari raised her eyebrows and shrugged, pretending not to think it was funny. He walked over to the loveseat and sat down on it, chewing his sandwich while in deep thought. You could tell his eyes were quite distant. They did that often when he thought. Hikari mentally slapped herself. _Stop, right now_. She thought, tugging on a strand of navy-blue hair. It was pretty long now, but she usually kept it into a ponytail, keeping the yellow clips out. Except for when she was just lying around then she kept it at its full length, which reached about to her mid-torso.

"So, how was that last contest? I'm sorry I missed it, but the league was only open that day." Kouki said defensively, finishing his sandwhich and placing the plate on the sidetable next to the loveseat. Hikari usually got mad at them when they missed a contest. First, because she always trained really hard for them and second, she had to fly all the way out to Hearthrome for them which took a while.

"Oh it's fine. I understand. I actually got a new dress and a second-place ribbon. It wasn't so bad." Hikari said nonchalantly as she released her grip from her hair and threw her legs up on the couch, spreading them out. Kouki nodded awkwardly and cleared his throat.

"Do you want to see my dress?" Hikari asked quietly. She put on a pleading look and looked at him, big eyes and all. Kouki opened his mouth to protest but soon realized it was the least he could do for her. He hadn't gone to the contest _and _accidentally got her stuck in a mansion with him. Yeah, it was the least he could do. Though, the big eyes didn't do much to help his defiance in the first place. He nodded and her eyes sparkled as she quickly ran up the stairs to her room.

Kouki sat on the loveseat, his head in his hands, thinking about how to get out of this situation. Maybe if he could call Volkner or Flint. Volkner could probably get them out of this, with all of his handiwork. Volkner and Kouki had grown close over the years due to their similar personalities. It also helped that they were both around the same age, with Volkner in the lead by three years. He constantly visited the Villa to see the trio, though Kouki mostly suspected it was because of Hikari. She was, after all, the trainer who ignited his spirit again. He was most likely going to admire her after a while. Especially now when she was so much more...mature. Kouki shook his head. _Don't make it awkard Kouki, just don't, _he reminded himself. Before he could finish his thought Hikari walked in with her new dress.

Her hair was curlier than it had been a few minutes ago and it now cascaded down her back . She wore a light blue strapless dress with a white ribbon around the stomach. It tied in the back into a large bow and the two strips fell down to her ankles. Her eyes were complimented with a little bit of black eye-makeup, bringing out the natural blues of her eyes. She looked gorgeous, Kouki felt...weird.

"Wow, you look...fantastic." He said, standing up. He felt like he had to stand up. Like she was some sort of princess. She smiled and blushed a little bit, or maybe that was just the makeup but Kouki felt...happy when she blushed. It was, dare he say it, cute. He stood awkwardly in front of her and since he was taller, he sort of loomed over her. Hikari punched him playfully in the stomach.

"I guess it's what I used to do when I was younger and it was a snow-day or something," Hikari said quietly to herself and partly to Kouki. He furrowed his eyebrows and murmured a 'huh?' still a tad distracted about how well that dress fit her. "Well, when I was younger and really bored, I would always play dress up. It was my favorite thing to do." She said, staring up at him. Kouki thought about it for a moment. Yeah, Hikari was definitly the dress-up type.

"Um, actually while you were getting, uh dressed I was thinking about calling Volkner or something to get us out of this mess." Kouki said nervously. Hikari's face fell a little bit but she quickly recovered it with a bright smile.

"Well yeah, anything to get us out of this mess." She agreed, but there was some sort of wistful sadness in her eyes. Kouki took a deep breath. She obviously didn't want to stop her little dress up charade. To be completely honest Kouki wasn't sure he wanted her to stop either. She looked amazing in that dress. He smiled.

"Or we could wait it out until the storm dies down and call Jun later, if you want to play dolls a little longer." Kouki joked, poking her in the shoulder. Hikari puffed out her cheeks but laughed playfully, running back up towards her room. "K! I'll go get changed into the dress I wore a few weeks ago!" She shouted. Kouki closed his eyes for a moment and sat back down on the love seat. In about fifteen minutes she was ready. Kouki stood up and faced the staircase, ready for the newest heart-rate spike.

This time she was wearing a dark, ivy green gown. It was over-the-shoulder and ended at her knees. She wore a lighter green, transparent shawl and the bottom of her gown twisted up on the one side with a dark green flower. Her hair was in a very sleek, sophisticated ponytail with her bangs braided and clipped to the side of her head. She wore very little makeup this time around. Kouki could feel his heart bounce up his throat, and he could've sworn he choked on it.

"Uh..." He said stupidly, trying to conjur up a word but his brain was on 'viewing mode' not 'thinking mode'. Hikari giggled and blushed, this time it was real, her smile was huge and it only added to the beauty of the dress. Kouki stood there for a few seconds, still not saying anything. She looked...beautiful.

"Beautiful." He murmured, a bit embarassed, but still honest nontheless. Hikari smiled and wrapped her arms around his torso, giving him a hug. He hugged her back, trying not to think of the dress. She broke the hug all-too-soon and ran back up the stairs. Kouki stood dumbly at the bottom of the stairs. A few minutes later she came back down the stairs, wearing her baggy sweatpants, white tanktop, and hair down. That's when Kouki realized. She was beautiful all the time, and he felt his palms get sweaty. Why hadn't he realized this beforehand? Even when she was in her typical, 'hanging around the house' clothes, she was pretty. He sighed.

"Your turn." She said, sitting back down on the couch and smiling. Her words snapped Kouki back into reality and he turned towards her, a look of confusion plastered on his face.

"What?" Kouki asked, one eyebrow skyrocketing to the ceiling. Hikari nodded and motioned for him to go up the stairs. He shook his head and sat back down on the love-seat. He would not become the fasion-puppet of her. Not even if she paid him. Not happening.

"Please." She asked, her eyes widening. Kouki, of course, made the mistake of looking over at her. He immediately regretted as he looked into her bright, sapphire eyes. She was pleading him. He couldn't say no to that face, could he? She was so, sad. Kouki rolled his eyes and walked up the stairs, thinking of his best outfit on the way up. Hikari sat victoriously on the couch. She had time to think.

Kouki had called her beautiful, why was she so happy about that? She was told she was beautiful before, by a lot of people. And of course she had been grateful, but this time was different. She had a certain pride in her, a pride like she had just won a battle against the champion. A weird kind of pride. He thought she had looked beautiful. She smiled to herself and tugged her hair again. _Thanks Kouki, _she thanked him in her head. "I'm ready!" She heard from upstairs.

Hikari immediately shot up and ran towards the stairs, eager to see his Sunday best. She found herself more anxious as Kouki walked down the stairs.

His hat still remained on the arm of the couch, so you could see his messy navy hair. It was shaggy and had a 'bedhead-meets-calm' look, if Hikari had to describe it. Kouki was wearing a blue striped, button-down, long-sleeved shirt. Though his sleeves were pushed up, accentuating his surprisingly well-built arms. Hikari was surprised to see that his arms were actually pretty ripped. She was intrigued with raised eyebrows. He wore dark jeans and black converse. _Wow, stylin' guy, _Hikari thought to herself.

"You look suave." Hikari said as she walked up to him and observed his hair. Then she flicked his forearms and chuckled. "No wonder we broke the doorknob. Look at your arms!" She said, backing up. Kouki laughed nervously and scratched the back of his neck. He tended to do that a lot. _DARN IT HIKARI, STOP, _she yelled to herself.

"Well you know, training'll do that for ya." Kouki said with a nervous laugh. Hikari smiled and sat down on the couch, picking up an old magazine and flipping through it while Kouki quickly looked out the window in the open kitchen. He frowned and walked over to the couch.

"It's still not letting up." Kouki said and he began to walk back up to his room to change. Hikari sighed and furrowed her eyebrows. Of course it hadn't lightened up, somebody was clearly mad at her today. She still wanted to call Jun, but she knew that if she did and told him that he shouldn't come, he would. She focused back on the magazine as Kouki walked back down the stairs wearing a white tee shirt and basketball shorts, still not wearing his hat. He picked up his _Myths of Hoenn _and began reading again.

It was around 8 o'clock when the storm had finally let up, and Hikari was ecstatic. That was of course, before they realized it was far too dark in the winter to actually navigate from the League back to their Villa. She frowned and crossed her arms.

"Well this is just fantasic. Now he's going to have to stay at the League's hotel overnight." Hikari said angrily, leaning against the granite counter of the kitchen. She looked at the pitch-black out the window and her frown etched deeper into her face.

"He'll be fine. Jun knows how to handle himself. In fact, he might just stay with Palmer. Granted, if Palmer lets him. I'm sure he will though." Kouki said, leaning next to her with his head in his hands. They both sighed. Hikari straightened out and walked towards the fridge, opening it and grabbing two water bottles, giving one to Kouki.

"Thanks." He murmured, opening it and taking a sip. Hikari spun the cap for her's on the counter.

"So...when you called me beautiful did you mean it?" Hikari asked, abruptly stopping the cap from spinning. Kouki tightened his grip on the water bottle._ Darn, should have known she would bring it up soon enough, _he thought to himself. Kouki turned around to face her and tried to put on an embarassed smile.

"Sure, I mean...that's what you looked like." He said quielty, feeling a slow blush creep up onto his cheeks. Kouki could feel the cliché coming up to bite him. Hikari smiled brightly and ran over towards him. _Please don't, _Kouki silently begged her, but it was too late. She had given him a hug around the neck. One of the worst kinds. The kinds that say, _hey, you belong to my arms now. So shut up and take it like a man, oh and I like the way your shoulders are. _Or at least that's what Kouki thought.

"Awww, thank you Kouki. If it's any consolation, I thought you looked handsome." Hikari said quietly into his chest. Kouki could feel warmth bubbling up inside him._ Wait, didn't I say I didn't want to make this awkward,_ it was far past that point now. Hikari then looked up at him. He felt that weird feeling churning in his chest and coiling around his throat.

She moved upward and planted a kiss on his lips. He felt that familiar feeling of warmth along with a new feeling. A feeling of...joy? Yes, joy was what this was. He felt weightless and happy, realizing slowly that this is what he wanted all along. Ever since that day when he had first seen Hikari, way back when they were ten. He remembered it like it was yesterday.

_Hikari walked with Jun, smiling happily. They both were ecstatic about Hikari turning ten that day, especially Jun who had been waiting a few months for her to catch up to him. They walked towards the lake, happiness apparent on their faces. _

_ "What d'you think you're gonna catch, Kari?" Jun asked, fiddling with his pockets. Hikari placed a small finger on her chin and her young face faded into a mask of thought. A few seconds later and pointed her finger in the air. _

_ "A Bidoof!" She said excitedly. Jun stared at her for a few moments then began to laugh. He muttered things about how pathetic Bidoofs were between laughs and punched her playfully in the shoulder. _

_ They arrived at the lake and immediately upon their arrival they noticed two others were there. An old man with white hair and a beard. His eyes were hard and they examined the lake steadily. He wore a vest and white shirt, obviously not caring about the weather. The younger man next to him wore a red hat and a blue coat with a white scarf dangling carelessly down his chest. He had dull, grey eyes and wore a quizzical frown. _

_ They both looked over towards Hikari and Jun and the proffesor began to leave. But before Kouki exited he gave Hikari a look, a look that said "Hey, maybe we can be friends.". He then proceeded to tell them to come by the lab later and his affection for them only grew with time. _

Then the kiss was over in a second. That warm feeling inside Kouki's chest evaporating. Hikari still had her arms wrapped around his neck and she gave him a warm, blushy smile.

"Well..." He said quietly, an awkward blanket thickening the air. A banging, clattering sound erupted from the door and a thick pile of snow and body came tumbling into the house. They broke off from each other just in time for Jun to rear his blonde head out of the snow heap.

"I don't know how I made it home, it was so dark. Maybe it was one of those, subconcious things you know!" Jun asked, standing up and brushing off his jacket. Hikari and Kouki ran over towards him, helping him up and hugging him.

"So...uh, what did you guys do while I was gone?" Jun asked once they had gotten all the snow out and settled in. The door remained open, until they could go and get a new doorknob, which was unfortunate, but livable. They were now sitting on the couch, warmed by the fireplace and hot cocoa. Hikari and Kouki exchanged a look.

"Nothing."


End file.
